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the Warrener

I have just been reading the latest issue of sporting rifle magazine which is a very good publication ,but i must say i was dissapointed reading the article by the warrener ,he encountered a sick red hind and did not dispatch it because his client did not want to ruin his stalk ,any anti reading this would have some ammo here i belive ,i have always been taught to dispatch any sick or wounded animals on sight ,there was always another day for his client as he was going out the next day ! someone in the press should show a better example the deers welfare is no1 prority not a trohpy shot with the camera .

Although I am not aware of the article, it goes without saying that it is the duty of every stalker to dispatch wounded or sick deer and end their suffering and misery. If any client with myself refused to take the animal, I would politely ask him to give me the rifle to dispatch the deer, or use my own if I had it with me.
I also carry with me on occassions a 2 shot revolver when I am with clients, which can be useful on the odd occassion, but it is rare that I need to use it.
I would then offer the client a refund or a free stalk. Besides stalking Reds they should have had ample time during the rest of the day to get another shot, especially if the rut was on and they where in Scotland on a reasonable estate.
The clients welfare and safety is of course important above all else, but when this sort of situation arises and the client refuses to dispatch the animal, well to me it speaks volumes about the client you are with.

I saw much the same thing on one of the Prime Time "American Deer Shooting DVD's". A guy up a tree stand let a buck walk right underneath him without taking a shot, because it's rack wasn't big enough, dispite having sufficiant sheep fencing or bale net around his antlers to make a farmers day.
Sad to see, people like this should try airgun shooting at fairs, might even manage to call in a tin can.

I saw much the same thing on one of the Prime Time "American Deer Shooting DVD's". A guy up a tree stand let a buck walk right underneath him without taking a shot, because it's rack wasn't big enough, dispite having sufficiant sheep fencing or bale net around his antlers to make a farmers day.
Sad to see, people like this should try airgun shooting at fairs, might even manage to call in a tin can.

Over much of the US the State Game and Wildlife Depts operate a hunters tag system which limits the number of bucks/does that a hunter can legitimately harvest in any one season. Sometimes the limit is as low as a single beast.
Under such restrictive controls you can understand a hunters unwillingness to drop the first beast that comes along even under such extreme circumstances as it could have taken him several years to successfully secure his hunters tag in the first place.

Is the system ideal? No! Would any of us do the right thing? I would hope so, but who can say for definite? I know I certainly can't.

Certainly in most states for Whitetail you have various open seasons. For instance in New York State they have a blackpowder, rifle and bow season, allbeit the seasons are not as long as ours. State hunting licences are available, and of course they have State owned land which people can hunt on, which of course we do not have.

Tags I believe tend to refer to limited animals that you may hunt. Such as Desert Bighorn, Chiraz Moose, Mountain Lion. I know that some States do not allow non residents of the state to hunt, unless they apply for a tag, which may take some years before you are succesful. The same can also apply for birds.

I think I am right in saying that if you have enclosed (fenced land) land, the seasons do not apply. I had two American clients last year who had enclosed their property for the Whitetail and they told me they are allowed to take animals out of the normal season, although everything was taken from a high seat (or treestand to use the American term)

Most Americans are very suprised at the length of our seasons and the diversity of game we have over here, and the abundance.

The vagaries of the US state and federal licensing system talkes some understanding if you are a non US based hunter.They have some very peculiar regional differences to contend with also.
I know that their bow hunting seasons are longer than their shooting seasons, some states have a separate muzzle loader season which falls between the two.
Some states don't allow deer to be shot with muzzle loads I believe. Some states allow non residents hunting rights as long as they have a license some require you to apply for tags.

Their state held lands are vast and open to all that comply with the rules and regulation. Don't forget that some states are the size of and often larger than some european countries. There's a lot of space between people and game specie when you have that amount of landscape to play in. Utterly different from this tiny , over populated, increasingly over regulated country that we find ourselves in.